Youth Voice is a youth led advocacy group supported by Queensland Program of Assistance to Survivors of Torture and Trauma (QPASTT). Youth Voice members are young people aged 15–25 who are passionate about advocacy, change and growing through passion projects that foster community healing and change.

In this presentation, Youth Voice will amplify the narratives and lived experiences of young individuals throughout their educational journeys. These personal stories are vital components of the discourse surrounding trauma aware education, offering profound insights to educators of the challenges faced by young people from diverse backgrounds.

Our narratives encompass a spectrum of themes, ranging from encounters with racism, discrimination, and systemic inequities within the educational landscape to confronting issues of bullying. The presentation will underscore the imperative of dismantling existing harmful cycles pervasive across all facets of the education sector, including the critical areas of:

Navigating Intersectional Trauma: We will explore the intricate web of challenges confronting young people, particularly focusing on the experiences of newly arrived youth within the Australian education system. Additionally, we will highlight the diverse experiences of refugee and migrant student cohorts, underscoring the profound impact of socio-political and economic shifts on their educational trajectories. Central to our discussion is the imperative of amplifying student voices to foster understanding and support.

Student Privacy and Institutional Barriers: Within educational institutions, educators and mentors serve as crucial points of contact for many students. However, there exists a significant barrier to students' willingness to share their personal challenges. We will address the pervasive issues surrounding student privacy, emphasizing the need for a supportive environment where students feel empowered to voice their concerns. Furthermore, we will critique euro-centric perspectives that overlook cultural differences and fail to recognize the external responsibilities shouldered by students beyond their control.

This presentation aims to contribute to the dialogue at the conference, through advocating for a more inclusive, empathetic, and trauma-informed approach to education.

There is growing awareness that trauma-aware education aligns with best practice in meeting the learning and social-emotional needs of young people. With increasing rates of school refusal correlating with an increase in access requests to distance education, it is essential that educators are equipping young people with the skills needed to face the challenges life throws at them. Distance education poses significant challenges in building connections between students and school, especially when students come from a place of long-term disengagement with their schooling and at times school-associated trauma. This workshop will allow participants to explore the impact of trauma on the learning experience and identify practical strategies to support the development of student self-regulation to maximise learning outcomes. The positive impact of teacher and school-wide factors in mitigating the adverse effects of ACEs will also be discussed.
The workshop will explore:
• Behaviour as a stress response
• The skillset for self-regulation
• A case study of trauma-informed positive education in the distance education setting
• Measuring impact (attendance and engagement)
• The mitigating effect of PCEs on ACES